The ‘ADAC Junior Cup powered by KTM’ – is the label the German junior racing school will use from 2014. The Cup will field the brand new KTM RC390 with a four-stroke single-cylinder engine in an thrilling new opportunity for youngsters to get on the track. Check out the details and for some sumptuous shots of the 390 racer

For 20 years the ADAC Junior Cup has been an effective showcase for kids from the age of 13 to display signs of their talent using production-based two-stroke 125cc bikes. From 2014 the technology will switch to four-stroke and the new KTM RC390 Cup was presented for the first time at Sachsenring for the German round of MotoGP last weekend.

Visitors to the German circuit were able to enjoy a world premier as the standard version of the Cup racer – the new fully enclosed RC390 – which in turn is based on the 390 Duke naked bike, will be officially presented at the EICMA motorcycle show in Milan this November and will then arrive in dealer showrooms in spring 2014.

The machine is a 370cc and is cut down to run 38hp (around 44hp would be possible) and weighs about 170 pounds. The Cup racer comes with all the necessary add-ons such as Akrapovic exhaust, Power Part footrests, single seat and brake lever guards and costs only 6500 euros. The nominal entrance fee for the eight round series and a pre-season training session will be an additional 2490 euros. The cup is open to riders of any nation but is expecting to attract the majority from Switzerland, Austria, Holland etc.

The unveiling was done by factory KTM racer and Moto3 championship leader Luis Salom of Spain and German Philip Öttl; the latter started his career in the ADAC Junior Cup and now is in his rookie Moto3 season steering a Kalex-KTM. ADAC Sports President Hermann Tomczyk, Dorna CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta and KTM Motorsports Director Pit Beirer presented the new project, which is designed to be a perfect learning platform, in other words a financially accessible series and a level playing field in terms of equipment.

One of the eight Cup race dates will be held at the Sachsenring for the 2014 Grand Prix. The rest will be run alongside the German Superbike IDM calendar. As a special treat the first three classified riders will go into the selection process for the Red Bull Rookies Cup in 2015. One lucky potential star will be able to complete a full IDM term on a KTM Moto3 machine the following season.